A collection of thoughts, ideas, and opinions independently written by members of the MSU community and curated by MSU Libraries

Picture the scene: A bustling New England tavern, December 1785. Two patrons sit at the bar, swapping war stories and discussing nascent U.S. political philosophy over mugs of… of what, exactly? MSU Special Collections recently acquired an early American tavern keeper’s account book that can help answer that question—recording what American revolutionaries and their contemporaries …

A Book of Cyphers, or Letters Reverst (1683)Our somewhat damaged copy of this 17th century work on cyphers or monograms features wonderful hand-coloring throughout. Some of the colors have faded with age, but this artistic personal touch still adds a layer of beauty to this fascinating little book. Tweet

Valentine’s Day is nearly upon us! And while it can be a time of joy for many, for some it is more bittersweet, recalling memories of past heartache. If you fall into the latter camp this year, don’t fret—we uncovered the remedy you might need in an old manuscript recipe book. “A Cure for Love” was …

Some rather morbid copperplate engravings depicting the death of Louis XVI of France (1793) were folded up in this contemporary German book about the monarch. The book (actually three works bound together) covers the life and death of the French king, and the loose plates show his execution by guillotine in grisly detail. …

The Nuremberg Chronicle (1493) is renowned for its fantastic woodcut illustrations. A total of 1,809 illustrations adorn the book, but only 645 woodblocks were cut. Most of the illustrations are re-used throughout the book – some as many as 11 times! Above are six instances of the same illustration, as seen in the copy owned …

A nightmare before Christmas? Our copy of Elsie’s Hallowe’en Experience, an 1888 collection of children’s stories from author Mary Dow Brine, was apparently given as an Xmas gift in 1908. It’s not as strange as it sounds—the work does contain a couple of Christmas stories in addition to the titular tale of a spooky Halloween …

Last week I had the privilege of teaching an upper-level French class here at MSU all about special collections, rare books, and rare book provenance. It was a blast! The students got a chance to work with some very old books (the earliest was printed in 1551 and the latest in 1845), transcribing and translating …

Here are some close-up shots from the giant manuscript antiphonary we wrote about a few months ago. Last Wednesday was the MSU Libraries Open House, and this was one of the wonderful items Special Collections set out to entice passers-by. Some of the students who stopped by affectionately referred to it as a “Harry Potter book,” …

The 19th Amendment to the US Constitution was ratified on this day (August 18) in 1920, finally granting American women the right to vote. But the battle over women’s suffrage was fought first in the legislatures and courts of individual states, and with the passage of time it can be easy to forget just …

Histriomastix: The Player’s Scourge (1633) This ponderous work by Puritan author William Prynne is essentially an extended argument against the perceived sins of the theater. For over 1,000 pages, the work viciously rails against the immorality of acting, dancing, and other such pursuits. A handwritten note in the front of our copy quotes Prynne’s infamous …

Cookbooks, we have found, are among the most heavily annotated modern books. Previous owners often modified recipes, made comments on their favorite (or least favorite) entries, or left food stains behind – sure signs of (repeated) use!Notes in cookbooks are often very personal, revealing a great deal about the tastes of the former owner – but …

Some Yeares Travels into Africa and Asia (4th edition, 1677)Sir Thomas Herbert’s 17th century travelogue features a number of wondrous illustrations and descriptions of lands far from the author’s native England. It was an amazingly ambitious work for its time, and undoubtedly inspired many with its fanciful descriptions of strange creatures and exotic locales. The …

Is this 17th century collection of German criminology woodcuts one of the world’s first comic books? The book, dated 1686, is made up of 20 or so woodcut illustrations showing the administration of criminal justice, including images of defendants before judges and scenes of punishment and torture. All of the illustrations have been …

Nineteenth century text messaging:Two pupils use a blank leaf in their Latin textbook to pass notes about school, girls. The messages are dated Oct. 22, 1877, and offer some insight into the concerns of students nearly 140 years ago (note: they were much the same as they are today). A: What do you think …

Florentine Chronicle (1537) Born in the late 13th century in Florence, Giovanni Villani was a notable Italian statesman and diplomat, remembered today for recording the history of Florence in his Nuova Cronica, or New Chronicles. Our 16th century reprint of Villani’s Florentine chronicle features contemporary marginal annotations on nearly every page, marking important lines and …

What is the deadliest book on your shelves? Of course, every library holds a great deal of sensitive material – works which have unfortunately inspired violence, such as political manifestos, controversial religious texts, and so on. But what about a book that could actually be physically dangerous to handle? This is the story of MSU’s …

When I read the book, the biography famous, And is this then (said I) what the author calls a man’s life? And so will some one when I am dead and gone write my life? (As if any man really knew aught of my life, Why even I myself I often think know little or nothing …

Here’s a name that should be familiar to American history buffs and Michigan residents alike: Henry Dearborn, Revolutionary War Colonel, U.S. Secretary of War under Thomas Jefferson, Major General during the War of 1812, and the namesake of Dearborn, Michigan (the hometown of Henry Ford). In the summer of 1779, at the height of the …

Back in March, I shared something we had recently discovered in the Special Collections vault: an 1835 edition of Cruikshank at Home, inscribed by noted authors Samuel Clemens (Mark Twain) and Eugene Field. We were excited to find the autographs of these two 19th century literary giants, especially because no mention of the inscriptions was made in our library …

One of the lessons we learn through the study of rare book provenance is that no two copies of an old book are truly identical. Every volume lives its own life, and receives its own marks, scars, and brands as it moves from owner to owner through time and space. Some marks of provenance are accidental, or at …

“And thou, homely little brown thing with worn leaves, yet more precious to me than all jewels of the earth—come, let me take thee from thy shelf and hold thee lovingly in my hands and press thee tenderly to this aged and slow-pulsing heart of mine… soon must we part forever; when I am gone …

As we have seen time and time again, one can learn a great deal by examining the various marks in books. However, this study of rare book provenance often focuses on the primitive, mundane, or even ugly facets of book ownership. Libraries and personal collectors do not generally stamp or inscribe their books to beautify …

“In a good book the best is between the lines.” – Swedish proverb Remember this quote we left you with last time? Ostensibly the saying is a Swedish proverb (I’m skeptical), but whatever the origin, it’s been on my mind quite a bit lately. While I’m sure the intent behind the proverb is to extol …

Happy belated New Year to our readers! This week we’re going to look at one of the most heavily annotated books we’ve come across so far during the course of the Provenance Project here at MSU Special Collections: a collection of poems by 17th century English Poet Laureate John Dryden. This 1688 anthology, entitled Dryden’s Poems, …

We’ve undergone a name change! What’s the deal? Are we having an identity crisis? The blog is still in its infancy, as is the MSU Special Collections Provenance Project, in many ways. We’re still finding our footing. Beginning in January we’ve got some plans for publicity and outreach, but for now this blog is the …